Medications & Dietary Supplements for Overweight/Obesity Quiz

• Medications for obesity: Orlistat, Lorcaserin, Phentermine/topiramate ER, Naltrexone/bupropion, and Phentermine.
• Orlistat (Alli): Long-term use, inhibits pancreatic lipase, reduces fat absorption, causes fecal fat loss, and may lead to decreases in fat-soluble vitamins. Effectiveness includes more than 11% weight loss in the first year, improved cardiovascular risk factors, and decreased energy intake.
• Lorcaserin (Belviq): Long-term use, a serotonergic drug for weight loss, reduces food intake by targeting the serotonin-2C receptor in the hypothalamus. Effectiveness includes weight loss and maintenance, improvements in cardiovascular risk factors, and decreased hunger ratings. Safety: caution against using with SSRIs or MAOIs due to serotonin syndrome risk.
• Phentermine/topiramate ER (Qsymia): Long-term use, phentermine reduces appetite through increased norepinephrine and topiramate affects gamma-aminobutyric acid receptors. Effectiveness includes weight loss with improvements in most risk factors, reduced severity of sleep apnea symptoms, and decreases in blood pressure, glycemic measures, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. Common side effects include paraesthesia, dizziness, dysgeusia, insomnia, constipation, and dry mouth. Contraindications: pregnancy, hyperthyroidism, or hypersensitivity to ingredients.
• Naltrexone/bupropion (Contrave): Long-term use, not yet on the market. Bupropion reduces food intake by acting on adrenergic and dopaminergic receptors in the hypothalamus, and naltrexone is an opioid receptor antagonist that inhibits opioid receptors affected by beta-endorphin, releasing alpha-MSH to inhibit food intake.
• Approved medications for obesity have varying mechanisms of action, durations of use, and side effects, as well as benefits in terms of weight loss and improvements in various risk factors.
• Orlistat primarily targets fat absorption, while Lorcaserin influences serotonin receptors and Phentermine/topiramate ER affects both norepinephrine and GABA receptors. Naltrexone/bupropion utilizes opioid receptor antagonism.
• Side effects range from mild and resolved quickly, such as headache, nausea, dizziness, and constipation, to more serious contraindications like pregnancy for certain medications.
• Long-term use of these medications often yields significant weight loss and improvements in risk factors like blood pressure, glycemic measures, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. However, caution must be taken to avoid serious side effects and contraindications.

Test your knowledge on medications and dietary supplements for overweight/obesity, physical activity recommendations, and FDA standards. Learn about the mechanism of action, effectiveness, safety, and approved duration of medications approved for obesity, as well as their impact on diabetes. Prepare for Group B2 presentation by Fawatim Alkhamis, Lujain Albahrani, and Rehaf Albaqami.